Reflection - 2 Corinthians 7:6

Paul didn't have to credit God as one "who comforts the humble" - he could've just praised God for the comfort brought through Titus showing up. But instead, Paul just tosses the nugget in there.

At a glance, maybe it looks like Paul is building himself, or his group, up by self-referencing as "humble". But calling yourself humble isn't the proud and arrogant claim that it sounds like today...

In reality - humility is an honest view of oneself, not in inflated or deflated view - but I won't digress farther than that...

Paul isn't bragging about his own humility, or claiming that because he's humble then God comforts him. No, the sense of the word ταπεινός (tapeinos) is downcast... ie. someone in need of comfort.

Paul is giving God praise, just naturally in his own language, as the one who comforts people who need it. By God's grace on my life, I believe I have seen a similar pattern - I even outlined in by-gods-grace regarding why I say "by God's grace" so often... It's just become apart of how I talk because the overflow of God's love for me is made manifest in my language.

Thank God for Paul, and for the work God does in his people to recognize his own Glory. And thank God that I can look back over 10 and 20 years and recognize the work God has done in me that I might recognize his Glory as well.

God most certainly does comfort the downcast, no word is sweeter than his in my ear when things aren't going my way. But why? It's because his word to me is built on a foundation (a decades old foundation at this point, by his grace) of love. I have come to believe and know beyond any shadow of a doubt of God's love for me, and by his love I know that when I am downcast I am not forsaken, I'm just... downcast. And God comforts me in those times. I don't think it can make sense without personal intimate knowledge of the Lord - no one could read this and take seriously that the often silent comfort God brings is so powerful. Or, to be more related to the verse, that when we are comforted through each other, it is still then an act of grace by the Lord to bring that comfort through another person. Without the adoption papers signed by Yahweh signifying your sonship to the King, I do not believe that this comfort can even begin to make sense.

But by God's grace, it makes sense to me, and praise the Name of the Lord for it.